Dear Neighbor,
Greetings from the Capitol, where it is “omnibus season” in the House. Most of our time is being spent in committee meetings where the majority is moving bill packages through the process that will shape our state’s next two-year budget.
Here is more on the budget process and more:
Public meeting re: possible transfer of Sioux lands
Sen. Gary Dahms and I invite area residents to attend an informational meeting regarding the possible transfer of lands from the Upper Sioux Agency State Park to the Upper Sioux Community. The meeting will take place 7 p.m. this Wednesday (April 5) in the cafeteria of the Minnesota West Community and Technical College Granite Falls Campus (1593 ? 11th Ave.). People should use the door to the AG Bush Student Center on 11th Ave.
We look forward to a good forum where questions can be asked and information from the various parties involved can be shared about this possible land transfer.
Sen. Dahms and I will host and moderate the discussion. The following attendees have confirmed their attendance on the panel to answer questions:
- Scott Roemhildt, Region 4 Director, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
- Ben Leonard, Senior Director for Historic Sites and Facilities Operations, Minnesota Historical Society
- David Kelliher, Director of Government Relations, Minnesota Historical Society
- Kevin Jensvold, Tribal Chairman, Upper Sioux Community
- Dave Smiglewski, Mayor, Granite Falls
- John Berends, Commissioner, Yellow Medicine County
For more information, please contact Sen. Dahms’ office at (651) 296-3218.
Budget work
The House and Senate majorities and Gov. Tim Walz recently reached agreement to a spending plan that would increase Minnesota’s budget by almost $18 billion for the next two-year budget cycle, raising state spending by 40 percent and bringing our new General Fund spending total to $71.9 billion in the process. Tax relief accounts for just a small fraction of the Democrats budget proposal, and Democrat leaders have not committed to fully repealing the state tax on Social Security.
Omnibus finance bills to fund the various sections of state government are moving through the House committee process. As the ranking Republican on the committee related to energy, I found numerous areas for concern in the package related to that subject. The bill the House majority has created does nothing to ensure Minnesotans have access to affordable and reliable energy on a stable grid. The bill also does not make Minnesota businesses more competitive (unless you count subsidies to special interests). Instead, the bill includes mandates that will only serve to drive up costs.
Transportation taxes
Despite a $17.5 billion surplus, Democrats in St. Paul are committed to increasing numerous taxes, several of which pertain to transportation. For example, the House Democrat transportation bill raises taxes and fees by at least $4 billion – $1.71 billion in 2024-25, and by more than $2.2 billion in 2026-27. Here is a glimpse at just some of what they propose:
- License tab fee increases
- $10 surcharge on license tabs
- Motor vehicle sales tax increase
- ¾-cent metro area sales tax increase (for transit)
- 75-cent delivery tax (everything from Amazon packages to pizza delivery)
We’ll see how this plays out, but it’s really difficult to see public support for these completely unnecessary tax increases, especially when the state already has collected around $18 billion too much from taxpayers.
Stay in touch,
Chris